Mowing is one of the most important practices in maintaining a healthy lawn. Mowing your lawn serves two main purposes. Firstly the aesthetic appeal is immediately noticeable and secondly, mowing will groom turf that’s healthy, drought-tolerant, and thick enough to crowd out weeds.
Benefits
- Immediate aesthetic appeal. A freshly mown lawn is a sight to behold, giving it a manicured and orderly appearance due to the oldest top parts of the blades being cut off showing off the younger and fresher parts.
- Regular mowing of your lawn keeps your lawn healthy whilst simultaneously eliminating pests and some types of weeds.
- Mowing at the correct height increases lawn density and helps root systems remain deep and healthy. Healthy root systems absorb nutrients and water more efficiently and the density of the roots will result in fewer weeds and better drought tolerance.
- More even growth results from regular mowing, improving even absorption and distribution of nutrients from water and sunlight.
- Regular mowing provides a constant supply of mulch which returns nutrients to your lawn after mowing.
- Mowing at a higher height will shade the soil resulting in less watering and fewer weeds.
Common Mistakes
- Mowing a lawn too short. Each grass stem has foliage where it stores its water. Shortly mown lawn removes this foliage, resulting in grass stems drying out and becoming weaker. A general rule of thumb is to keep no less than 1/3 of the height of the blade.
- Mowing cool-season grasses such as LM Berea too often.
- Cutting wet grass. This will cause an uneven cut as the blades stick together. The clippings can also clog the mower while creating a mat on the grass blocking the sunlight.
- Mowing your lawn will dull blades. Dull mower blades result in blades tearing instead of being cut resulting in jagged and discolored blades that are easily susceptible to diseases and pests. Sharpen your mower blades at least once every four cuts.
- Mowing in the same direction every time. Changing the direction in which you mow each time will allow blades to grow back in a more upright position.
- Using a brushcutter to mow your lawn. Brush cutters scarify the grass, damaging the stalks. The rough cut leaves a larger surface area of the blade resulting in higher chances of diseases and pests.
- Raking leaves off your lawn. Raking will lift the roots resulting in a weaker root system and slow lawn growth. Rather use a leafblower.
Mowing through the seasons.
Winter: It’s better to leave your lawn longer going into winter to retain its colour for longer and block out weeds. It will also help your lawn be better prepared for the frost and cold and help achieve a quicker spring back recovery.
Spring: Your lawn will start growing fervently going into spring with all the rain. Depending on the concentration of rainfall, mowing can be done weekly but is also dependant on the vigorousness of grass growth.
Summer: Routine mowing about once a week for faster-growing lawn but also dependant on the intensity of lawn growth.
Autumn: Routine mows slow down to help lawn retain energy going into Winter.
For more information and advice, please feel free to give us a call or pop us a message.